Quebec Major Junior Hockey League facing class action over alleged hazing abuse
A former player with the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League has filed an application for a class-action lawsuit of more than $15 million against the league and its teams over alleged hazing abuse.
Carl Latulippe played in Quebec's main junior league between 1994 and 1996 and claims he was abused during hazing rituals with two teams.
Latulippe, 45, says that during training camp he was forced by veteran players of the Chicoutimi Saguenéens to undress and masturbate in front of teammates on a team bus, with full knowledge of the coaches. He also alleges that team veterans assaulted rookies with soap wrapped in towels.
The plaintiff's accusations were made public last month in an article in Montreal La Presse, at which time the league said it had already opened investigations into sexual and physical abuse among its franchises.
Latulippe was Chicoutimi’s first-round pick in the 1994 QMJHL draft; he was 16. After the masturbation incident on the bus, he left the team without saying why, but the head coach convinced him to return. Latulippe said he discussed the behaviour of veteran players with his coach, who allegedly replied that the hazing would only last a year and helped to build character. He played six regular season games with the Saguenéens.
His application for a class action says he was later traded to the Drummondville Voltigeurs and was also abused by members of that team during hazing rituals. Latulippe alleges that Voltigeurs rookies were required to cover themselves in shampoo to make it difficult for veterans to grab and assault them in the shower.
One Voltigeurs veteran allegedly tore the anus of a rookie by shoving a hanger inside him. Latulippe also describes being forced to binge drink at a team initiation event in Drumonndville, Que.
After the Voltigeurs, the plaintiff played for the Beauport Harfangs — who have since become the Quebec City Remparts. He said no abusive hazing incidents occurred while he was on that team.
The class action seeks to represent "all hockey players who have experienced abuse while they were minors and playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League … starting from July 1, 1969."
Latulippe says he suffered from several psychological consequences as a result of the alleged abuse; he says he became addicted to drugs and gambling, preventing him from maintaining his income. As well, he says he hasn't been able to set foot in an arena since his time in the Quebec major juniors and refuses to allow his son to play hockey out of fear the child would suffer similar abuse.
The request to launch the class action dated Tuesday was filed at the Quebec City courthouse; a Superior Court judge must authorize the case before it can proceed.
Latulippe's application targets the Quebec league, its member franchises and its umbrella organization — the Canadian Hockey League — and seeks $650,000 for the plaintiff in damages, including pain, suffering and humiliation, as well as lost productivity and therapy. Another $15 million is to be shared among other alleged victims.
The lawsuit notes that both the CHL and QMJHL have codes of conduct in which teams have the obligation to supervise players. A bylaw for Quebec's league states that players must evolve "in a safe and formative environment to prepare them for their life as an adult."
Latulippe's lawsuit says that the defendants, "when they had an obligation to protect the members of the class and to look after their well-being, witnessed the abuse, encouraged it, neglected, tolerated, covered up or ignored it."
Montreal law firm Kugler Kandestin, which represents Latulippe, said their client felt that now was the time to come forward.
"For him it was a sense of responsibility, both in terms of the past with respect to players who have suffered abuse as he suffered and who have continued to suffer in silence," lawyer David Stolow said.
In Montreal, federal Sports Minister Pascale St-Onge said it's clear that hockey needs a culture change, calling Latulippe's lawsuit a signal that things are evolving.
"The fact that people are talking about it today is a good thing because it's breaking the culture of silence and people feel heard," St-Onge said.
In Quebec City, Quebec Sports Minister Isabelle Charest spoke about the importance of going public with accusations.
"I have always told victims to file a complaint when they are in a situation like this," Charest said. "This is what is happening through the justice system (and) my hope for them is to find peace."
The Quebec application came after the Ontario Superior Court in February denied authorization for a class action in that province involving players in Canada's three major junior hockey leagues — including the QMJHL — dating back to 1975.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Paul Perell accepted evidence that former players suffered “horrific and despicable and unquestionably criminal acts” at the hands of teammates and staff during initiations and hazing rituals. But the judge said the plaintiffs failed to present a workable plan to litigate.
The plaintiffs can still appeal that decision or launch individual lawsuits against the leagues and teams.
The Quebec filing excludes anyone who participates in any individual lawsuits in Ontario.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 24, 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
BREAKING Mounties will not be charged in shooting death of B.C. Indigenous man
Three Mounties in British Columbia will not face charges in the killing of a 38-year-old Indigenous man on Vancouver Island in 2021.
Canada's favourite sport to watch is hockey, survey shows
The 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs have already delivered a fever level of fan excitement in Canada.
Douglas DC-4 plane with 2 people on board crashes into river outside Fairbanks, Alaska
A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday, Alaska State Troopers said.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.